Your body: a plain-language map

Many people grow up with nicknames for their bodies, or with no words at all. Knowing the accurate names makes it easier to describe a symptom to a clinician, to understand a leaflet and to notice when something has changed. None of these words are rude: they are simply the names of body parts, just like elbow or knee.

Bodies vary a lot. Size, shape, colour and symmetry differ from person to person, and most of that variety is completely normal. Some people are intersex, meaning their sex characteristics do not fit typical female or male patterns, and some trans and non-binary people use different words for their own bodies. This map uses the standard anatomical terms so they can be looked up easily.

The vulva is the outside part: it includes the labia, the visible tip of the clitoris and the openings of the urethra and vagina. A very common mix-up is to call the whole area the vagina, but the vagina is actually the elastic canal that leads from the vulva to the cervix. The clitoris is larger than it looks, because most of it lies beneath the skin.

Further inside, the cervix forms the narrow lower end of the uterus, or womb. On either side, the ovaries store eggs and make hormones, and the fallopian tubes carry an egg towards the uterus. The hymen, a thin fold of tissue near the vaginal opening, varies widely in shape and cannot show whether someone has had sex.

The penis carries urine and semen out of the body through the urethra. In people who have not been circumcised, the tip is covered by a retractable foreskin. Circumcision, the removal of the foreskin, is done for religious, cultural or medical reasons.

Behind the penis, the scrotum holds the testicles, which make sperm and testosterone and are kept at a slightly cooler temperature than the rest of the body. The prostate, a small gland below the bladder, adds part of the fluid in semen. Between the genitals and the anus sits the perineum, which is part of the pelvic floor.

Hormones such as estrogen and testosterone are present in everyone in different amounts. Rising levels of these hormones drive puberty, the years when a child's body matures into an adult one. Puberty starts at different ages and moves at different speeds, which is one reason classmates can look so different from each other.

For people who have periods, the menstrual cycle is a roughly monthly pattern of hormonal changes. Ovulation, the release of an egg, happens partway through, and if there is no pregnancy the lining of the uterus is shed as menstruation. Discharge naturally changes through the cycle. Later in life, perimenopause brings irregular periods before menopause, when periods stop for good.

The pelvic floor is a hammock of muscles and connective tissue at the base of the pelvis. It supports the bladder, the bowel and, where present, the uterus, and it plays a part in bladder control and sexual response. Pregnancy, birth, ageing and some health conditions can weaken it.

Kegel exercises, repeated squeezes and releases of these muscles, are a common way to strengthen it. Not every pelvic problem is about weakness, though: some people have muscles that tighten too much, as in vaginismus. A physiotherapist who specialises in the pelvic floor can help work out which is which.

A few routine habits help catch problems early. Cervical screening checks cells from the cervix for high-risk HPV and early changes. Testicular self-examination means getting to know what is normal for you so that a new lump or swelling stands out. A sexual health check covers STI testing, contraception and vaccines in one visit.

Pain, unusual bleeding, a change in discharge or smell, a new lump, or anything that worries you is worth getting looked at, even if it feels embarrassing. Clinicians see these concerns every day. This guide is general information only: a doctor, nurse or sexual health clinic can advise on your own situation.